Step 8: Print!

Step 9: Clean up.

Clean the screen and putty knife with dish soap and water. Peel off all the vinyl if you want to use the screen again.Be sure the ink is out of the me...

As a seasoned printer, friends and acquaintances consistently ask me if i can print shirts, cards, etc. for them. Usually, however, they only need a few things printed at a time, and it doesn't really justify the time/cost of doing it the "right way." I conceived this method of printing so it could be shared with anyone who wants to print short, inexpensive runs on any substrate, without having to deal with the space and economic constraints of setting up a whole studio. Most of the supplies for this project would usually end up in a landfill, and can be found completely for free.Usually one can get 20 or more successful prints with this method, which seems to be sufficient for most small projects.

Step 1: Supplies

For this project, we will need some tools and supplies that are easily available, and a few that might require the tiniest bit of searching....

Recycling is key here. Most of the supplies required can be found as trash, including the ink. What isn't direct waste can be recycled from thrift stores or garage sales.

Tools:Staple Gun (almost any size will do)X-acto Knife, or Utility knife (you could use a plain razor blade in a pinch)Heat Gun or a Hair DryerScissorsPlastic Putty KnifeSmall Container for mixing

Materials:'Spray AdhesiveStaplesAny old picture frame as long as it is bigger than your image. (ideally you can find this in the trash)Water based paint or ink of any type (recycle! use old housepaint that would end up in the landfill/water table without you!Some sort of ink retarder -I used "Floetrol" which is sold in most hardware stores as a latex paint wetting agent. It is around 6$ for the bottle. You can also use straight glycerine, which is available at most drug stores for a dollar or two for a small bottle.Adhesive Backed Sign Vinyl (any color)-This is available from many arts and crafts stores, but sign shops generate so much scrap every day that if you ask them nicely, they will almost certainly just give you some. If you don't want to ask, check the dumpster, because thats where it will end up. This material is the garbage left behind by the modern printing industry. it is a shame that it doesn't get re-used more.Screen Printing Fabric (a piece bigger than your old picture frame) -This is available in various mesh counts from dickblick.com, again screenprinting shops can help you out if you ask nicely, and their dumpsters can be messy, but fruitful. -If you are adventurous, you can experiment with different fabrics from the scrap bin at the fabric store and use that instead of genuine screen fabric.Substrate (stuff to print on) -Paper, Shirts, other textiles, bags, napkins, underpants, and just about anything else that is reasonably flat will work fine.

Here's the part I don't understand: how do you simply "Peel the vinyl stencil and stick it directly to the bottom of the screen" without the small cut-out bits of the stencil falling off or going askew, or narrow cut-out lines no longer lining up neatly as the backing is peeled away? As you noted previously, the paper backing is the only thing holding the vinyl pieces together and in the correct locations. Is there a trick to removing it without disturbing the position of the vinyl parts? It seems as though you'd have to be VERY careful to design it as a one-piece stencil, and even then you'd end up having to fiddle with the smaller cut-out bits to re-align them on the screen before burnishing. Or am I missing something obvious here?

the difference is that water based paint dissolves into other things, breaks down with time and is not as strong. This is why its used for indoors, it also has no volatile compounds or cancer giving fumes. Oil and petroleum- synthetic paints are used outside the house or in other applications.

Because the clothes will wear with time, so will the paint so its no prob. and whatever breaks down will dissolve in the detergent as you wash them.

interesting method you developed her, yet I feel like it defies the very idea of screen-printing, where the screen allows you to have a stencil with shapes not attached to anything around. Like with a hole cut-out all around. See what I mean? The problem would be the way you transfer the vinyl to the screen. I can't seem to see anyway to get it transfered with shapes completely cut around, without the good ol' "right way".

A good way to not get you all confused with the image takes but a few image editing steps. Basically, you set the contrast to 100% in a grayscale image. You might as well print it out in 'Draft' or whatever in order to save ink, though.

Great instructable, luckily I have access to a vinyl cutter. But, not to the ink, I can only get paint from hardware store. What paint could work for printing t shirts? I need to print white on black tshirts. Any suggestions?

I sometimes use speedball fabric paint to print white on black. I made some Harry Potter shirts for the 7th movie and they turned out great. I DID make two passes on the shirts though, to make sure the color was bright enough.

Very excellent, I have long wondered about the mysteries of screen printing, and you may have just saved me an entire semester learning it. I in no way want to be a professional screen printer, but i've often wanted to make my own t-shirts and junk, and with this i now can...thanks!

One of the best fabrics to use for screen printing is sheer drapery panels that are 100% polyester. I took a class with Kerr Grabowski who has several DVDs out on screenprinting for art quilts. She makes all her own screens with either 2x2 lumber or old canvas stretcher bars glued together, that is polyurethaned first and then she uses the drapery fabric over it. Very cheap since you can find lots of them at thrift stores. Color of fabric doesn't matter. If it tears or is otherwise destroyed, it can be quickly replaced at no more expense. Some of her screens are the size of a real screen door! Some have a total screen size of 6 square inches. Her work is wonderful. See also screen ides by Jane Dunnewold, Claire Benn and Leslie Morgan.

Assuming you mean cloth napkins, There should be no problem since as previously stated, water based paints are not harmful and will break up even if injested. However, just to make sure, after you finish your prints and dry them, give the napkins a quick wash. Smart way to look at this great instructable by the way

Yeah, I am real sure... Have you ever seen the Powell & Peralta move called, Bones Brigade-Future Primitive? It shows skateboards being designed by pro boarders (Caballero) with the silk screening process.

If you are not sure about your design or if it will work on your deck, you might consider using scrap wood to test it first.

you can actually make a convex frame but its a pain. the other way is to roll the surface as you print it (also a pain). that is how they print oil drums (with machines). the screen will probably have enough give to it that it will get decent coverage, just squeege from side to side instead of top to bottom.

just making a stencil out of paper/acetate etc and using spray adhesive would probably be easiest.